The process of creating a truly diverse and inclusive community requires a complete, uncompromising and ongoing commitment to pluralism. In working together, mistakes are made and conflict occurs—but both are also opportunities for growth and improvement. A school culture that embraces these opportunities is the same culture that is necessary for the delivery of excellent education.

Our Students. We are committed to constructing a school that reflects the racial, ethnic, economic and family diversity of San Francisco. We are proud of our increasing racial and ethnic diversity. For the 2007-08 school year:

• students of color comprise 39% of the school’s student population
• 9% of our students are from LGBTQ-headed households
• we have a growing population of students from Spanish-speaking households

Children’s Day School is a leader among San Francisco independent elementary schools in embracing an economically diverse population. 35% of our student population make use of our sliding scale tuition (22% of our annual operating budget is devoted to sliding scale tuition, an unprecedented commitment among independent elementary schools in the Bay Area). In addition, we are currently evaluating ways in which our sliding scale might be extended to include our Extended Day Program.

The school also has successfully partnered with the San Francisco-based Schools Mentoring and Resource Team (SMART) and with the I Have a Dream Foundation (IHAD) to recruit high-achieving middle school students from economically disadvantaged families.

Our Faculty. Children’s Day School is a racially and ethnically diverse community and we seek the same in our faculty and staff. Increasing faculty diversity is an important goal at CDS. Currently:

• people of color comprise 28% of the faculty
• several faculty and staff members are self-identified LGBTQ

Our Curriculum. There is a focus in the curriculum at all grade levels on appreciating and exploring the diverse experiences of the students, their families and the cultures around them and in the larger world. A few examples:

• As part of a preschool project on families, books about different types of families, books with LGBTQ heroes and books with gender-equitable roles are read to the students.
• Tying into a social justice theme of “hunger,” third grade studied harvests throughout the world, visited the People’s Grocery in Oakland and the San Francisco Food Bank and organized a school-wide food drive.
• Last year, fourth grade demonstrated social justice in action when they protested against the class photographs (families wanting a copy had to pay for it), arguing that this was unfair to CDS families who could not afford the cost. They were so persuasive that the school changed its policy – now every family receives one copy of their child’s class photo free of charge!

Teachers encourage parents, family and community members to visit the classrooms as guest speakers to talk about family customs, heritage, religious beliefs and experiences in other cultures and countries.

Our Community. We consciously work to create a school community that is inclusive and welcoming to all. Through activities such as our student buddy program and “family of the week,” we create an environment where students value and appreciate each other.

• Our buddy program is designed to create strong social bonds between different age groups of children. Buddy classes spend time together each week. As a result, older kids become role models for younger kids while the younger students become more familiar and comfortable with students in the upper grade levels.
• Each week, several families from our community are invited to create Family of the Week photo collages that celebrate the rich diversity of families that make up our community.

We currently have an active affinity group for LGBTQ community members and are in the process of creating affinity groups for families of color and Spanish-speaking families. CDS knows it is important to create many kinds of opportunities for community members to meet and socialize, to talk about common issues and concerns, and to work together to strengthen the school’s commitment to diversity and inclusiveness.

We are a member of Bay Area People of Color in Independent Schools (POCIS), an organization that supports teachers, administrators, parents and students who believe that diversity and multiculturalism are essential to quality education.